movie buff

Celebrity offers discount packages on the extra charge restaurants. Never really a problem getting reservations since probably less than 25% of passengers want to pay extra. That is just a personal choice. I am booked on a 12 night cruise and have pre booked a dining package for 7 of the 12 nights. The price averaged a extra $20 a night per person or $280 for 7 nights for the two of us. I love the speciality restaurants. They have their own kitchen and tend to be a much nicer smaller venu and quite compared to the main dining room. On a longer cruise it is just nice to have different dining experiences. Also because I end up with so much shipboard credits it covers the extra cost. Like I said it is a personal choice and I am so glad they have so many different dining venues on board, even at a extra price.

In my opinion Celebrity is so much better in the food department then Princess. I have sailed on both lines and the Celebrity ships offer so many more options at their buffet then Princess. I do also feel the main dining room is also better on Celebrity. Princess seems to have had many cut backs in the dining room over the last few years. I am sure there are some people who will disagree with me but in my opinion Celebrity is the winner in the food department.

This is a interesting thread which I posted on a couple of years ago. Nice to get other gay cruisers take on meeting others on a cruise. My partner and I have been on over 50 cruises over the 24 years we have been together. Out of a few hundred different gay men (a few woman too) we met only a very few we connected with. One male couple we became real friends with long term. Nice guys that live across the country from us yet we have done other cruises with them as well as visited and stayed in their home. The interesting thing is we seem to connect much more with straight couples. Many have become close friends of ours and we cruise together and visit each other in our homes. I can never understsnd exactly why more gay people on cruises we have been on are not interested in becoming friends even on the cruise. Seems like when I was younger in my twenties and thirties I was a magnet for other gay men to have a interest. Of course that mostly was a sexual attraction interest I am assuming.

No matter what my partner and I always make a attempt to meet and socialize with other gay couples and you can always hope to meet others that want to also. I never expect it to happen.

I use to book way ahead of time. If my plans changed it was never a problem with the deposit refundable. Now any cruise line that is non refundable I only book close in after final payment period. I know sometimes you are risking the cruise might be sold out or the cabin location might not be available. With so many cruise lines and ships I always find something that is usually at fire sale prices. You save lots of money if you can be flexible. Since I am now retired it makes a big difference. I think the lines that are using the non refundable deposit policy are hurting themselves since it makes many cruisers shop around and book lines that are not doing that.

I have sailed on upscale cruise lines that are really all inclusive with drinks, wine and just about any other beverage you can think of. You never present a card and just order anything and as much as you want. You pay a pretty hefty price for the cruise to get this. What I love about Celebrity and their drink package is you can be in the least expensive cabin and just buy the premium, or even just the classic package and then have the benifit of getting the same perk as you do on a luxury cruise line at thousands of dollars less. Or just pay as you go. I do like not having to keep track on how much I am spending on drinks and just the overall ease of it.

I have been cruising for 38 years and remember a time when if you were in a suite, which you did pay more for, you really got no extra perks. Just a larger cabin. Today you see more and more suites on ships and at extreamly high prices. I really do not expect to get much if I am on a 7 night Caribbean cruise paying $799 for a inside cabin. On that same cruise you will find someone who has paid $3000 a person for a entry level suite. You better believe they should get some perks. I have no problem with that because I could have opted to get that expensive suite too if I wanted to fork out the money. The fact is that unless you have a party in your cabin nobody knows or really cares what type of room you are in. Yes they might have a special restaurant or one special lounge to be in. The fact is most people want to be out with everyone else having fun in the lounges and public areas of the ship that are there for everyone to enjoy.

This is a very interesting thread. Lots of different input and experiences. I have sailed on many different lines. The two lines I have sailed most are Celebrity and Crystal. Crystal has much smaller ships less people and as they say you get what you pay for. The big difference is I can sail in a suite on Celebrity for what I have to pay Crystal in just a standard outside cabin. I like Celebrity very much but on a different level than Crystal. I know what to expect with the Celebrity product and am fine with it. It is not perfect but still good. I expect perfection with Crystal but you can find the same complaints about how the service has decreased in some areas on Crystal.

I really can not say I have had any problems with what Celebrity delivers for service. In fact I am amazed at the level of service they do provide with the larger ships and passenger counts that exceed 2000 people. Some people are upset with the way Celebrity prices the cruise far in advance then discounts most of the time after final payments are made. In my opinion they now way over price the cruises far in advance and they only end up selling maybe half of the ship. Then are forced with reducing prices to fill it up after the final payment date. You can really find bargains then. That is when I book. I understand that is not a option for many because you need to plan ahead. That is what Celebrity and other cruise lines hope for. I have given up planning ahead and just book my vacation time dates to lock in a time frame. Then go shopping around for deals on different cruise lines closer in when you find what are considered bargains. Celebrity sometimes has the best deals close in. It is all a game you need to play if you want to try and save money. Or if you have plenty of money just buy what you want and pick out the perfect cabin location and forget what the future price reduction might be.

NCL use to take care of their passengers when issues like cancellations or disruptions occurred. Another company from China now owns them. They do not care about past passengers and their loyalty. They screwed me big time with this cruise. Would not change or help me at all. All you can do as a consumer is to no longer use the line to take cruises. Also spread the word to others what happened and encourage them not to book on this line. Will it put NCL out of business? Of course not. But at least you have the satisfaction of not giving them any more of your hard earned money. There are many other cruise lines that take care of there passengers when problems arise. Just cross NCL off your list and move on. I have.

The biggest issue for many that booked on the Pearl is we had locked into a good price point by booking way in advance. This cruise was just a 5 night repo from Vancouver to Los Angeles that was leaving on October 1. They have another one on the Bliss that leaves one day earlier on September 1 also a 5 night. They have lots of space available on that cruise but will not let us exchange for that one unless we pay the new higher rates, which in some cases are double or even triple what the Pearl cost was for us. They are screwing the passengers who had booked the Pearl months ago. All I can say is they have lost my business for good and I am sure many other people feel the exact same. Not the end of the world because there are so many other cruise lines to pick. I will say this. I have had this happen before with Celebrity cruise line and they always took good care of me when something like this happened. Bye bye NCL forever.

My husband and I have sailed with Crystal for quite a few years. We will be sailing again on October 13, 2017 on the Crystal Serenity. This would be our 12th cruise on Crystal. We do sail on other lines too. Crystal is our favorite for several reasons. They are a very gay friendly line. We have found there are always a fair amount of LGBT passengers on every Crystal cruise we have taken. Crystal always hosts special get togethers for the LGBT passengers. We have also found most all other passengers and crew on board to be very gay friendly. The age group of all passengers are usually 40 years plus with a few exceptions. Usually a very nice mix of passengers and not at all stuffy. Crystal use to be pretty much on the formal side a few years ago. They are a bit more relaxed today but passengers tend to dress nice in the evening. The other thing we love is the size of the ships. A very nice size that offers many amenities that you would find on the large ships but with fewer passengers. The food is excellent as well as the service. We love the all inclusive element of Crystal's product as well. They also have a very nice range of entertainment on board. Full scale Broadway type shows as well as special entertainment that is different on every cruise. All in all we have been happy with what Crystal has had to offer. Their two ocean liners are older ships but they look sparkling new inside because Crystal ships go into drydock quite often to be updated and totally remodeled including the cabins. Hope you decide to try Crystal one day. I believe you will like what they have to offer.

I have been on many different cruise lines over the years. The product of each line has evolved over the years. Based on the lines I have sailed on the larger mass market ships I feel personally Celebrity has the p best current overall product. I have sailed recently on Princess and it was a notch or two below Celebrity as far as the overall food goes. Same for NCL and Holland America. You have to consider it is very subjective. Every line has its fans and loyalty. I am sure there are many Princess fans that do not care for Celebrity. I love to cruise and continue to move around to different lines and products. Always try to make the best out of something that could be better. Celebrity is one of the overall best lines for me but I really have never had what I call a bad time on any cruise or ship.

Oops..posted on wrong roll call

My husband and I are both considered seniors by the gay community standards. We have never done a all gay cruise but have considered it. Friends of ours who are in the same age group as we are have done one and had a blast. We feel we would probably consider going on one if we had a group of friends all going together. That way you have a comfort zone with friends and can still enjoy everything else around you. We will see what happens.

I am now into day 6 out of 15 of the cruise. This has turned out to be one of the most social I have seen with gay men. Must be over 50 gay couples and some singles on board. Met many nice people. Already been to one big party a couple had in their Royal Suite. Nice mix of people gay and straight. So far it has been a fun social cruise. Much of this is probably due to lots of sea days.

Sorry to say we are not on that NCL cruise. We get home from our current cruise from Toyko on September 23. Went to the gay get together on our first night and I must say there was quite a nice crowd that showed up. Made some good contacts. Nice to be able to make that happen on the first evening of the cruise.

Just sailed out of Vancouver BC on celebrity Millenium 15 nights to Tokyo. They had listed in today's newsletter a LGBT get together in the Martini Bar at 7:45 pm. Of course that is a odd time for some people to attend because of dinner plans but we are going to attend and see what happens.

If you are on a shorter length cruise like 7 nights or less it is very difficult to even attempt to go to the posted get togethers. We are leaving on September 2 on the millennium for a 15 night crossing to Japan. Lots of sea days,which is what we love. We are hopeful that we will meet a few family members at either a posted get together or even at the martini bar.

Since we have never been to Tokyo or Japan period we are considering taking a tour on the last day of the cruise the is offered by celebrity. A all day tour with lunch which I think they are charging about $150 USDollars per person. When we are on our own the next day when the cruise is over we are headed to the Hilton Toyko Bay hotel. It is right next to Tokyo Disneyland which we are going to spend a couple of days doing. I am a huge Disney fan having grown up living almost across the street from Disneyland in California. We live in the San Francisco area today and fly to Orlando Florida quite often and visit DisneyWorld. I Gary, am the Disney nut. My other half Brian is not into it as much as I am but enjoys it too. Looking forward to meeting the two of you. Gary

I have been cruising since I was in my mid twenties. We are talking about the 1980's forward. Back then there were no organized get togethers but always managed to meet a nice crowd in the bars and lounges. In recent years even with the posted gatherings it is really hit or miss. It is all a age and/or personality issue. I have never turned away from any friendly person. When I was younger and pretty it seemed everyone flocked to me like glue. Things change I am sorry to say. Now almost 63 it seems when you do have a nice group of people show up the younger stay away from the older like you have a contagious disease. Many in my own age group seem not to be all that interested in being friends. My partner and myself are very friendly people in my opinion. We actually meet more straight people who are attracted to us as wanting to be friends. We still always make attempts every time we cruise but I think many in the gay community have issues. Of course there are many around in our community that are friendly. We just have not been lucky enough to meet them on a cruise. And we cruise a lot.

Hi guys, my husband and I are on this cruise. We booked it just a few weeks ago. Going to spend a few days in Tokyo at the end. Hope to see you on the cruise. We will be at the martini bar most nights for sure. Gary and Brian

My Husband and I love Crystal Cruises. Only two mid size ships. I know it is pricy but it is pretty much all inclusive. They stock your cabins with what you like for drinks. Very nice upscale passengers and crew that are very gay friendly. Been on Crystal 11 times over the last few years. Also like Celebrity for more main stream cruising. Princess is next in line but only like mini suites and above on princess. Their balcony and below cabins do not have any sitting area other than a small chair.

I have sailed on many different cruise ships and lines that offered butler service in the suites I have booked. Most of the time I have had great service, full meals served in the room, special request for food and drinks when I had invited guests to my cabin and many other things. My baseline tip has always been $10 per day to the butler. That is usually the least I have tipped when I have not asked for lots of extras. I have tipped as high as double that if the service has been superior and the butler even offers to pack my bags at the end of the cruise. That is the part of the trip I hate the most and to have someone offer to do it for you sure deserves something a little extra in my opinion.

All I can find out up to this point is the NCL Sun is coming into San Frabcisco on April 29. Then leaving the same day to deadhead to Portland for a Drrdock. Then it deadheads back to San Francisco to leave on May 8 for a 8 night Alaska cruise that ends in Vancouver. Not really any recent information that I have found on what exactly they are going to be doing. I know the ship really needs a major refresh, especially the cabins. Not sure how much they can even do in a one week drydock. I will be on that first cruise after drydock on May 8. Unless someone else has any more information I will leave feedback after I am on the ship. I hope someone else has a heads up on what they are going to do.

A good friend of mine was on the Ruby on a seven day Mexico cruise. He told me he ate at Share on the second night of the cruise and really enjoyed it very much. Good food and service. He also did say the place was empty and he was there at 7:00 pm. He also told me he heard some people saying they did not like the cover charge price of $39 compared to Crown Grill only charging $25. I get the feeling Share will be hit or miss depending on the passengers on different cruises. I have cruised with Princess many times and love the Crown Grill, usually eat there at least two or three times on a 10 night cruise. It is a bargain for $25. Yet many times I have eaten there there were always many empty tables and booths some nights. It is great for me because I am always able to get a reservation. Just hope Share does well enough to add the venue to all Princess ships.

This on going Celebrity promo is very confusing to so many people. I have been on two cruises and booked another one for next year under this promo. Celebrity knows what they are doing and are making huge profits with this promo. My guess is most people stick with the Go Big part and pick the Classic beverage package. Celebrity knows a good percent upgrade to the premium package so they get you right there making more money. It is very nice not to worry about ordering drinks and running up a huge bill at the end of the cruise. But trust me you are paying for it up front anyway. The best deal is always the outside cabin. You get the same promo perks with the lowest price cabin that the promo allows. People are discovering this and the outside cabins sell out quickly. It is all a number crunching game. The problem is many people do not take the time to figure it out. You also have to know that in many cases when you pick a senior rate or a resident rate that gives you a slight discount they knock you out of the promo. You might still do better with the promo depending what the other discount is. You just have to get your calculator out and crunch the numbers and see what you are really getting. I think this promo has been a major success for Celebrity. Not always a good deal for the consumer.